Belinda Thorpe, Managing Director of Residentsline looks at what we can expect in 2019. 

As we make a start on 2019, we can’t help but wonder what this year has in store for the property industry market. So, what changes can we expect?

Brexit

The topic on everybody’s mind for 2019 – Brexit. The political situation will likely affect nearly all British businesses, bringing with it a great deal of change – especially to the property insurance market.

According to Property 118, the precarious nature of our current economic stability means people are going to be a lot less likely to buy, instead choosing to rent. This is good news for landlords, although it is mentionable that possible future redundancies (a consequence of economic difficulties) could leave some with problems paying the rent.

Remarkably, as stated by City A.M., house prices will still be on the rise – although only slightly. It is predicted that there will be an initial slump in the early part of the year, quickly followed by a “1 per cent growth in the first six months”, whilst there will be a growth of 1.5 per cent over the course of 2019. According to UK Residential Research, there is likely to be a growth of 11 per cent over the next five years as the economy stabilises. However, others such as Strutt and Parker predict even larger increases – they estimate a growth of 2.5 per cent for 2019 alone, and 18 per cent over the next 5 years. Either way, we can safely estimate there will be a rise in house prices, despite our current irresolute predicament.

Amid such uncertainty surrounding our future economy, it has never been more important to ensure the protection of your property. Start the year off right and make sure that, no matter what happens, you are correctly insured – it will make 2019 a lot easier for you to manage!

What are we working on?

Deposit & Rent

With the year ahead seeming somewhat precarious, it is a relief to assure you that here at Residentsline, we have many developments in the pipeline; specifically, Deposit and Rent – offering a unique product for landlords – enabling Landlords to accept tenants without taking a deposit and not losing out.

From only £75 inc IPT we can provide much more protection than a deposit can, including:

• Legal costs and expenses – up to the £50,000 to negotiate settlement of any dilapidation’s claims.
• Legal costs and expenses – up to £50,000 to pursue your legal rights if your tenant has absconded before dilapidation’s inventory was completed.

A deposit is not a legal requirement and can also be a heavy administrative burden for you as a landlord, pass the job over to the experts.

The benefits to the Landlord include:

• No need to hold a deposit in a tenants deposit scheme
• No excess to pay in the event of a claim
• No hassle with the tenant

Overall, less hassle and less admin and no cost as the premium can be recharged back to your tenant.

In addition we offer Landlord Legal and Rent Protection from only £95 inc IPT, which provides:

• Repossession costs – up to £50,000 to pursue your legal rights to gain vacant possession of your property.
• Rent Protection and Rent Recovery – to cover unpaid rent due to you under the terms of your tenancy agreement
• Damage to your Property – Pursuing your legal rights against a tenant or another party who has caused damage to your property

London Flats Insurance

We have designed a new product – just aimed at the London market – London Flats Insurance. Underwriting property in and around London is different to the rest of the country so we have negotiated with our Insurers to design a product and premiums just for you if your block is in London.

Roads and Gated Insurance

Gated estate properties come with a multitude of advantages. Most notably, they have far more security measures than a standard street-side property. With restricted access gated estates are arguably some of the safest places to live in the UK. That may be why they are especially popular with elderly residents and single people, as well as those who travel a lot – the additional security that comes with gated estate properties is hard to match in a standard street-side dwelling.

Our product has been designed specifically for private roads and gated estates: as such, we’ve called it the Roads and Gated Estates Insurance. This policy will provide cover for gates, fences, boundaries, un-adopted drains, roads, street lights and street furniture.

Because we want to make sure our clients have the most comprehensive cover, we’ve been very thorough in creating a policy which ensures that the (often forgotten) fundamental features of gated estates are covered – all, of course, for the most competitive price.

Residentsline online

As many of our clients are already aware, Residentsline have developed two online portals which we provide (free of charge) for the convenience of our customers. Our Property Management Portal is designed specifically for property managers, whilst Manage Your Block has been created for Residents’ Management Companies in mind.

Both Cloud-based portals are free of charge and exclusive to our clients. They give our customers a place to store, add and view all of the insurance documentation for their property, as well as keeping a register of suppliers, such as gardeners and electricians – even giving the option to request quotes from the preferred suppliers for each block. Each portal also allows for communication with residents and suppliers and keeps them posted with news regarding the property.

To ensure that Residentsline customers always have the best products possible, we keep our online portals updated continuously. We’re always finding ways to make our services easier to access, easier to use and more efficient in every way – all for your benefit.

We know that the future of the property industry is leaning more and more towards online communication, so we want to keep up. To us, this means keeping our website up to scratch, so we’re updating that too, meaning your online experience with us will be smoother than ever. We will always be striving to provide more efficient customer service for you, your block and your clients – that’s our promise to you.